Keep the car! It's cheap enough already.... Speaking as another solo parent, you really do need a reliable car with no one to pick you up at night when the old one dies. But do scrub expenses. Lower your withholding. Cut expenses like the Great Depression was around the corner - just temporarily. Is...

There are likely some discretionary items somewhere in your budget. Is the 529s deposits legally mandated? It's pretty generous to put that much cash towards 3 years of college; in your place, I would be planning community college and then pay for the last 2 Or borrow it then, Try living like you ha...

The only thought to add is that deductions have changed a lot (depending on your SALT situation... standard deduction etc) this year, at the very least. There are some good tax estimating tools out there, so when you have time... might be good to get a better WAG on 2018. And depending on how much y...

When my mother passed away, I filed a final personal tax return for her, signing it as "executor" even though we never opened a probate with any court, sort of to close the books with the IRS. Mom had several months worth of SS, some modest interest and capital gains from her bond fund. There were n...

Of course, if your parents leave their IRAs to many people, the amount would be divided up. And if those beneficiaries were unemployed, they could take the money out at the very lowest tax bracket. Note that I'm not recommending this - it is just the lowest tax hit! Seriously, your parents are VERY ...

I don't think you could get anything for 8K. It will depend a lot on the size of the kitchen - scales up with the number of cabinets, square feet of counter, floor, whether you have to move any plumbing or electrical. And the quality/price range of the new components. And I think it varies a lot by ...

Based on their education, employment, lifestyle ... what would you guess their income/expenses to be? If they are clearly living well now, you should assume - and state frequently - that they appear to have it all under control and there is no reason they cannot continue to manage. If they are disab...

The step up basis is invaluable on a long-held asset. Do the daughters all want to hold it? Or sell it? Either way, getting to reset their cost basis to current fair market value is very valuable. Look into ways to pass the property easily (either a TOD or a trust) and find some other way to fund ex...

last time I looked at this the break points on qualified dividends/capital gains rates were not quite correct. It was a few weeks ago so maybe he has corrected it. I don't think the error would be huge though. Did you email the guy (author) to let him know? I found him very responsive when I found ...

If you own individual stocks, then you don't have an expense ratio like a mutual fund. However, there are likely to be buying and selling (transaction) costs. I will also add that some $67K divided over ~48 stocks... means you are paying a lot for someone to manage many odd lots, and none are big en...

If you really need $1500 per month, that is $18,000 per year. Your current assets total $188,000. So you are withdrawing 9.6% of the capital. Yes, you will run out of money; that is simply not a sustainable rate for more than about ~10 years. Is that enough years? No one knows. How is your health an...

You are paying more than 1.5 %. The fund expenses come out of the return and are not line-itemed. I wanted to emphasize that! You are paying off the top 1.5%, every year, whether you make money or not. PLUS each and every fund you are invested in has an expense ratio (and at worst case, sales load ...

Step 1: Pick your provider (Fidelity or Vanguard) Step 2: Then get on the phone or online with the new "home' team, and initiate transfers for all the other accounts so that you end up with one HSA, one rollover IRA, one taxable account, one Roth. You might want to keep the 401K as one account and s...

Check your library or buy a book from Nolo Press - they have an assortment of consumer education (DIY) books on estate planning, wills, trusts etc. Regardless of whether you need a lawyer to do it or not, knowledge is power. Here is one: https://www.amazon.com/Plan-Estate-Denis-Clifford-2006-03-30/d...

While one can wait until the very last day to pay bills to squeeze out that miniscule interest (my Depression-era Dad did that)... I have found that I sleep better planning for time to recover from errors, should anything you don't know about go wrong. Consider scheduling IRS payments the first week...

Wild thought - can you get both cars titled as joint, then change it later to just drop one person? Any exclusion for transferring between relatives (should your friend turn out to be your cousin, for example). Or at least transfer it a month or two later with massive depreciation.... I transferred ...

I just got a fat envelope from the IRS... which I sat down before I opened. It contained envelopes and forms for four 1040-ES payments and a 1040-V voucher.... none of which I need this year. I think they just send out a standard packet if you pay estimated taxes or ever owe on a return. I already g...

Awesome! If you can find a library that specializes in that (mystery..) type of book, that would be the best. If you are in California, the Huntington Library comes to mind. See if an expert can match you up with the best fit for a loan ... or eventual sale....

Definitely not duct cleaning - I've always thought that was a ripoff, and definitely not for a system that's only three years old. Who is in charge of the thermostat? Any change in windows left open, people home more during the day, more hot water or cooking (as in, what else is gas used for...). I ...

A quick google found several websites that allow you to comparison shop student loan refi - but they all vary depending on the degree, type of original loan etc. Honestly, I would hit loans B & D with every penny you can spare, and then look around. The rest of your loan rates are pretty good - I ce...

I have found that most banks can check all your accounts if you give them your SSN. Suggest trying it from that direction... and bring copies of all the old statements/1099 to the bank, so they can (perhaps) trace them (not just the account numbers, maybe they can look up old numbers). For banking, ...

Confusing. An organization that isn't you is using your SSN to report income? I would be much more worried about how they got that, what else they are using it for.... If it's your number (but not your name?) raise heck with Smith Barney. Try their fraud department, and see if you can get copies of ...

I must second any suggestion that allows you to plug in your tunes on a USB. My shiny new car has an incredible excessive audio input choice - AM, FM, XM, phone, CD, etc etc. The ONE that really worked amazing, flawlessly, and without any downsides I can perceive is the USB. I did take a few hours, ...

California is generally a beneficial state to have a trust, because the probate fees are still considerable: 4% of the first $100,000 of the gross value of the probate estate. 3% of the next $100,000. 2% of the next $800,000. 1% of the next $9 million.... But if the house is covered by the revocabl...

California is generally a beneficial state to have a trust, because the probate fees are still considerable: 4% of the first $100,000 of the gross value of the probate estate. 3% of the next $100,000. 2% of the next $800,000. 1% of the next $9 million.... Still a TON more than one would want to just...

Would it be possible to arrange your accounts so that you kept the bulk of your separate accounts (that net worth % you had before marriage) in separate accounts (possibly separate banks/brokerages, to be real clear), and then have as joint accounts only those funded with current earnings and (if ne...

Wow, the Bogleheads are sounding quite old here today. Lots of people put their TV over the fireplace! Old... or wise and experienced? Yes, house styles are changing. And lots of people do this. It's still really hard to actually watch a TV mounted that high - so, it's far from a good idea. "Lots o...

Do you envision hosting Super Bowl parties or just quiet movie nights with your family? Can you put the TV in a smaller study or lounge, or on another wall so that only part of the living room can see it? TV's over the fireplace are seen more (now that we have flat screens instead of consoles, house...

I enjoyed reading this detailed transcription. But I find it frightening - it takes a sharp, very on the ball person to deflect so many misstatements and attacks on someone's personal wealth. I can do it now (though not that well!) but how about in 10 years? I would guess that many less savvy people...

Solve the real problem - what is your overall estate plan should one or both of you die? That will need lots of thinking and a few magic spells (they come on parchment, and are called wills/trusts). You don't need him to play don't-peek-behind-the-green-curtain on financial fees! Clearly that part i...

Do you have a lot of significant assets right now? Thank you for the thoughtful responses. .. Since this community has much more experience than I, I've found it to be invaluable for questions like these. And you all have come through yet again! Awesome! A young family with a modest income would ha...

Don't forget that the kids will (based on parent's work history) be entitled to Social Security monthly support. I would think that would be the best long term financial help. I really like the idea of the family stepping in to help with daycare and child minding - that will allow Dad to focus on wo...

Suppose you viewed this like insurance - protection against a certain risk. If you presume that you own most of your assets as joint (husband/wife) and are each other beneficiaries.... What you are really insuring at this point is that your estate and children (far more critical) are properly cared ...

I would guess the most important thing would be to see if you are happy with the stock/bond ratio (and if it were my Grandma I would be leaning 75~80% bond/cashlike things) and then reduce the expense ratios. I am pretty happy (at 59...) with a mix of Total Bond fund and Short Corporate and CDs (tho...

It won't take you much longer than it does to print it all out, collect the data, and drive to see the tax guy. I would think an hour would be plenty, especially after your first year. With taxable accounts, not all the "free" tax services are available, but you can use the IRS forms directly. Tax s...

Saving is hard. I know. You could use 12%. Then you will make it faster and can save less/spend more. :shock: There is no call to be rude. Saving is very hard, and every person is to be commended for a) having a plan and b) trying to save. It would be more helpful to add that saving money will get ...

When my mother passed, I donated massive carloads of clothing, household goods, furniture (ok, they picked that up), luggage, etc etc. I took 100% of the tax deduction for those items, despite splitting the cash estate with my out-of-state sibling. After all, I did all the work.... Note that those h...

Hmmm. I spent that much about two years ago for a same-footprint, no windows, granite, high-end Home Depot cabinets "Decora", well-rated but not professional appliances.... I did have quite a lot of granite (30+ free due to two long counters and a buffet).... I think with the structural moves, your ...

I have gotten that message within Taxcut anytime I owe CA state taxes - and my plan is to owe less than $100 each April to both State and Fed! Kind of a game, I try to estimate it closely... So the real issue is that you are under-withheld overall, not that last RMD is the issue. A penalty might app...

I have never understood how vinyl would be considered a good option.. anywhere, ever. I have Hardie shingles on my freestanding garage (two sides, with the wall-facing sides sheathed in the Hardie 4x8' sheets). The stuff is awesome - doesn't shrink or droop, you can patch it like wood if you ding it...

So we presume you had CA estimated taxes withheld and the RMD was late in the year? I would ignore the tax software advisory message and pick the option that says "let them calculate and send me a bill". I think (guess?) that you truly don't owe a penalty and the software is just ... limited.

I'm going to go with the contrarian position. I hate double sinks - twice as much faucet/drain/edges to clean, amazing waste of below cabinet space (almost unusable compared to more drawers), twice as expensive to install... And I would really prefer a larger shower with a bench seat, or niches, or ...

7/1 ARM could save $$$ over 7 years and invest that money would yield higher returns and also salary would go up after 7 years vs if we lock down 30 years for 4% it is still below the average mortgage rates for 30year fixed in the US for the past 30 years. Please advise. The correct phrase is that ...

The market has not dropped that much! The real question is, after that withdrawal, can you live on ~3% of the remainder with your other income? What impact will this big withdrawal have on your income taxes for this year? (if so, consider a short term mortgage and pay it off over a couple years). Be...

My brokerage forms matched what I expected, so I filed last week (the day after I got the forms). Big refund due to massive charitable contributions brought on by the tax debacle - I donated 10 years worth of charity to write it off now. So, unexpected refund.... And I want it now!

At 84, you might look into what the maximum assets she would have to get into a Medicaid nursing home. I tend to think people should pay their own way... and you might have better choices in nicer facilities with more cash. Is there any reason you aren't pulling principal from her assets instead of ...

This is determinable! Find out what your capital gains are ... then look at your income or last tax return and find out what your "marginal" tax rate is (you can look at those tedious tax tables, find where your income falls). You will owe that % percentage of the gains.... You can calculate that, a...